John William Bund Willis-Bund (8 August 1843 – 7 June 1928) was a British lawyer, legal writer and professor of constitutional law and history at

King's College London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public research university located in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of King George IV and the Duke of Wellington. In 1836, King's ...

, a historian who wrote on the Welsh church and other subjects, and a local

Worcestershire Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a county in the West Midlands of England. The area that is now Worcestershire was absorbed into the unified Kingdom of England in 927, at which time it was constituted as a county (see His ...

politician. An electronic version of a publication by the Honourable Society of Cymmrodorion

Biography

Willis-Bund was born in 1843 at sea, his parents returning from his father's judicial posting in Australia. He was baptized at

Bahia Bahia ( , , ; meaning "bay") is one of the 26 Federative units of Brazil, states of Brazil, located in the Northeast Region, Brazil, Northeast Region of the country. It is the fourth-largest Brazilian state by population (after São Paulo (sta ...

, South America.The Times, 9 January 1928, p. 19Biographical History of Gonville and Caius College 1349-1897 vol. II 1713-1897, John Venn, Cambridge University Press/ C. J. Clay and Sons, 1898, pg 354 He was the son of John Walpole Willis and his second wife Ann Susanna Kent Bund, of

Wick Episcopi Wick is a village in the district of Wychavon in the county of Worcestershire, England. It is located 2 miles from the town of Pershore in the Vale of Evesham, and nestles in a large bend in the River Avon. It is bounded by areas of parkland ...

, Worcestershire. The adoption of his mother's surname (in 1864) was necessary in order to succeed his maternal grandfather as heir to the Bund family's Worcestershire properties. He was educated at

Eton Eton most commonly refers to Eton College, a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. Eton may also refer to: Places *Eton, Berkshire, a town in Berkshire, England * Eton, Georgia, a town in the United States * Éton, a commune in the Meuse dep ...

and

Caius College, Cambridge Gonville and Caius College, often referred to simply as Caius ( ), is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1348, it is the fourth-oldest of the University of Cambridge's 31 colleges and one of th ...

, graduating B.A. in 1865 with first-class honours in Law (and was awarded an honorary M.A. in 1868). He was also awarded an LL.B. (1865). He was

called to the Bar The call to the bar is a legal term of art in most common law jurisdictions where persons must be qualified to be allowed to argue in court on behalf of another party and are then said to have been "called to the bar" or to have received "call to ...

from

Lincoln's Inn The Honourable Society of Lincoln's Inn is one of the four Inns of Court in London to which barristers of England and Wales belong and where they are called to the Bar. (The other three are Middle Temple, Inner Temple and Gray's Inn.) Lincoln ...

. In the course of his legal career he was appointed

King's Counsel In the United Kingdom and in some Commonwealth countries, a King's Counsel ( post-nominal initials KC) during the reign of a king, or Queen's Counsel (post-nominal initials QC) during the reign of a queen, is a lawyer (usually a barrister or ...

.Elvers and Salmon: Moral Ecologies and Conflict on the Nineteenth-Century Severn, Carl J. Griffin and Iain J. M. Robertson in The New Coastal History: Cultural and Environmental Perspectives from Scotland and Beyond, ed. David Worthington, Palgrave Macmillan, 2017, p. 108 Willis-Bund was Professor of Constitutional Law and History at

from 1869 to 1882, and Lecturer in Law at the

University of Bristol , mottoeng = earningpromotes one's innate power (from Horace, ''Ode 4.4'') , established = 1595 – Merchant Venturers School1876 – University College, Bristol1909 – received royal charter , type ...

from 1877 to 1879.

Robert Thomas Jenkins Robert Thomas Jenkins CBE (31 August 1881 – 11 November 1969) was a Welsh historian and academic. Life Jenkins was born on 31 August 1881 in Liverpool. He moved with his family to Bangor, Gwynedd, when his father was appointed clerk to the ...

noted that Willis-Bund wrote extensively about the history of the church in Wales but that some of his views were not generally held to be those of other academics writing in the field. Jenkins commented on his editing of the ''Black Book of St. Davids'' in 1902 for the Honourable Society of Cymmrodorion: '...the work was but indifferently done', and mentioned another of Willis-Bund's books, ''The Celtic Church of Wales'', 1897, which propounded a theory of his own and was, Jenkins states, judged by Louis Gougaud to be "dubious and prejudiced," and by Sir

J. E. Lloyd Sir John Edward Lloyd (5 May 1861 – 20 June 1947) was a Welsh historian, He was the author of the first serious history of the country's formative years, ''A History of Wales from the Earliest Times to the Edwardian Conquest'' (1911). An ...

to be "very haphazard". Additionally, Gougaud observed that Willis-Bund's views (along with those of

Rice Rees Rice Rees (31 March 1804 – 20 May 1839) was a Welsh cleric and historian. Life Rees was born at Ton, near Llandovery, Carmarthenshire, Wales, son of David- of a distinguished Llandovery family- and Sarah Rees, and christened in the local In ...

), were 'widely different' from 'those adopted by present-day historians on the relation of ancient Celtic Christianity to the See of Peter', and Lloyd further stated that the work was a 'book of original, but highly disputable, views.'

The Church Quarterly Review ''The Church Quarterly Review'' (now abbreviated ''CQR'') was an English journal published by the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge. It existed independently from 1875 until 1968; in that year it merged with the ''London Quarterly and Hol ...

, in summary at the end of its review of the volume, concluded: 'We have not refrained from pointing out what we think the weak points of Mr Willis Bund's book: but the book is far better than its weakest points'. The book was considered a 'detailed' 'study of the institutions of ancient Welsh Christianity'. Willis-Bund was referred to by the Welsh politician

Clement Edwards (Allen) Clement Edwards (7 June 1869 – 23 June 1938), usually known as Clem, was a Welsh people, Welsh lawyer, journalist, trade union activist and Liberal Party (UK), Liberal Party politician. Family and education Edwards was born in Knight ...

in a 1914 House of Commons debate on the Established Church in Wales as 'a great authority... one of the greatest authorities on the history of the old Welsh Church'. Sir

Arthur Griffith-Boscawen Sir Arthur Sackville Trevor Griffith-Boscawen PC (18 October 1865 – 1 June 1946) was a British politician in the Conservative Party whose career was cut short by losing a string of Parliamentary elections. Biography Griffith-Boscawen was born ...

, however, in response, observed that Willis-Bund 'never got any support for the theory' in question, regarding the origins of

tithing A tithing or tything was a historic English legal, administrative or territorial unit, originally ten hides (and hence, one tenth of a hundred). Tithings later came to be seen as subdivisions of a manor or civil parish. The tithing's leader or s ...

. He served as chairman of the

Worcestershire County Council Worcestershire County Council is the county council for the non-metropolitan county of Worcestershire in England. The most recent elections to it were in 2021. Worcestershire County Council has its headquarters at County Hall in Worcester, wh ...

, the Worcestershire Appeal Tribunal, and the Worcestershire National Relief Fund during the First World War. He was appointed a Commander of the

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

in the

1918 New Year Honours The 1918 New Year Honours were appointments by King George V to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of the British Empire. The appointments were published in ''The London Gazette'' and ''The Times'' in Ja ...

. In 1927 he was awarded the honorary degree of Doctor of Law from the

University of Birmingham , mottoeng = Through efforts to heights , established = 1825 – Birmingham School of Medicine and Surgery1836 – Birmingham Royal School of Medicine and Surgery1843 – Queen's College1875 – Mason Science College1898 – Mason Univers ...

. He was appointed Vice-Lieutenant of the County of Worcester in November 1924. He was a

Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context. In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements. Within the context of higher education ...

. He held several official positions on the Severn Fishery Board, in 1874 being vice-chairman, county member, and representative member; amongst his many books were ''Salmon Fishing'' (1885) and ''A Handy Book of Fishery Management'' (1889) On his death in 1928, it was stated in '' Country Life'' that "a finer old man, with a more dominating personality, than the late Mr. Willis Bund would be hard to find, even in this country". His obituary in ''The Times'' called him "the grand old man of Worcestershire", and observed that he "by his personality and ability, had become the dominating influence in Worcestershire". Although his stern personality was noted, the obituary concluded that "his ability was recognized by all, and there is none left in Worcestershire adequately to fill his place."

Personal life

In 1872, Willis-Bund married Harriette Penelope Temple, the daughter (by his second wife) of Richard Temple, of The Nash,

Kempsey, Worcestershire Kempsey is a village and civil parish in the Malvern Hills District in the county of Worcestershire, England. It is bounded by the River Severn on the west, and the A38 main road runs through it and is about south of Worcester. The village h ...

, JP, DL. Temple's eldest son, also named

Richard Richard is a male given name. It originates, via Old French, from Frankish language, Old Frankish and is a Compound (linguistics), compound of the words descending from Proto-Germanic language, Proto-Germanic ''*rīk-'' 'ruler, leader, king' an ...

, a colonial administrator in India including as

Governor of Bombay Until the 18th century, Bombay consisted of seven islands separated by shallow sea. These seven islands were part of a larger archipelago in the Arabian sea, off the western coast of India. The date of city's founding is unclear—historians tr ...

from 1877 to 1880, was created a

baronet A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...

in 1876. The Willis-Bunds had six children. His surviving son and heir, Henry, died, unmarried, nine months after his father, having received the

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level pre-1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth countries. The MC i ...

whilst a captain in the R.A.M.C.Burke's Landed Gentry 1925, pg 235 Willis-Bund's daughter Margaret married John Henry

Milward Milward may refer to: Given name *Milward Kennedy (1894–1968), English civil servant, journalist, crime writer and literary critic *Milward Simpson (1897– 1993), American politician Surname *Alan Milward (1935–2010), British economic hi ...

, of the

Redditch Redditch is a town, and local government district, in north-east Worcestershire, England, approximately south of Birmingham. The district has a population of 85,000 as of 2019. In the 19th century, it became the international centre for the ...

needle-manufacturing family. Daughter Mary Susanna's son, Francis Leader MacCarthy-Willis-Bund (1905–1980), was Chaplain, Fellow and Dean of

Balliol College, Oxford Balliol College () is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. One of Oxford's oldest colleges, it was founded around 1263 by John I de Balliol, a landowner from Barnard Castle in County Durham, who provided the f ...

. In 1896, Willis-Bund married secondly Mary Elizabeth Thackeray, the daughter of General Frederick Rennell Thackeray and Lady Elizabeth Margaret Carnegie (the daughter of the 7th

Earl of Northesk Earl of Northesk is a title in the Peerage of Scotland. It was created in 1662 for John Carnegie, who notably served as Sheriff of Forfarshire. He was given the subsidiary title of Lord Rosehill and Eglismauldie (or Inglismaldie) at the same t ...

). Mary was the widow of Colonel Alexander Essex Frederick Holcombe, and second cousin of the novelist William Makepeace Thackeray. Willis-Bund's uncle was the clergyman and theologian

William Downes Willis William Downes Willis (9 September 1790 – 22 October 1871) was a British clergyman, theologian, and author on religious subjects. Early life and education Willis was the son of William Willis and Mary, daughter of landowner Robert Hamilton Smy ...

Books and articles

*''Some passages in the early history of Evesham Abbey'', a paper read before the Worcester Diocesan Architectural and Archaeological Society, at the Guildhall, on 25 January 1895 *''The Celtic Church of Wales'', 1897 *Paper on ''Peckham'' in Transactions of the Honourable Society of Cymmrodorion, 1900-1 *'Documents of the parish of Feckenham, Worcestershire'. ''Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of London'', 2nd ser., 18 (1901). *''Extent of all the lands and rents of the lord bishop of St. David's, 1326, usually called the Black Book of St. David's'' (Cymmrodorion record series, 5). 1902 *''The law of compensation for unexhausted agricultural improvements ...'' 1876 (3rd edition 1904). *''The Civil War in Worcestershire, 1642–1646, and the Scotch invasion of 1651'' (Birmingham). 1905 *'Worcestershire roads'. ''Reports & Papers Read at the Meetings of the Architectural (& Archaeological) Societies'', 33 (1916), 376–95.

Works edited

*''A Selection of Cases from the State Trials ... Trials for treason'' (1327–1681). Cambridge, 1879–1882. **Vol. 1. Trials for treason (1327–1660) **Vol. 2. pt. 1. Trials for treason (1660–1678) **Vol. 2. pt. 2. Trials for treason. The Popish plot (1678–1681) *''Lay Subsidy Roll for the County of Worcester, circ. 1280'', with John Amphlett of Clent. (Worcestershire Historical Society). Oxford, 1893. *''The Inquisitiones Post Mortem for the County of Worcester. Pts. 1–2, 1242–1326'' (Worcestershire Historical Society). Oxford, 1894–1909. *''Register of the Diocese of Worcester during the Vacancy of the See, usually called Registrum sede vacante, 1301-1435''. 1 vol. in 2 pts. (Worcestershire Historical Society). 1897. *''Episcopal Registers, Diocese of Worcester. Register of Bishop Godfrey Giffard, September 23, 1268, to August 15, 1301''. 2 vols. (Worcestershire Historical Society). 1898–1902. *''Worcestershire County Records. Calendar of the Quarter Session papers (1591–1643)'' (Worcestershire Historical Society). Worcester, 1900. *''Register of William de Geynesburgh, Bishop of Worcester, 1302–7''. Intr. by R. A. Wilson (Worcestershire Historical Society). 1907–29. *''Diary of Henry Townshend of Elmley Lovett, 1640-1663''. 2 vols. (Worcestershire Historical Society). 1915–20 *''Religio medici: Hydriotaphia: and the Letter to a Friend'', by Sir Thomas Browne (1605–1682). 1882 *''

Victoria County History The Victoria History of the Counties of England, commonly known as the Victoria County History or the VCH, is an English history project which began in 1899 with the aim of creating an encyclopaedic history of each of the historic counties of En ...

: A History of the County of Worcester'' (Volume 1 edited by Willis-Bund alone; volumes 2–4 co-edited with William Page). 1901–1926 *''Reflections: or sentences and moral maxims'', by François, duc de La Rochefoucauld (1613–1680). 1871

References

*Details of most of his works have been extracted fro
Royal Historical Society database

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Willis-Bund, John William 1843 births 1928 deaths People educated at Eton College Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Politics of Worcestershire Alumni of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge Academics of King's College London Members of the Cambrian Archaeological Association Members of Lincoln's Inn English barristers Fellows of the Society of Antiquaries of London English local historians Contributors to the Victoria County History